


the warmth within these fragile walls

by aruarudayo



Category: IDOLiSH7 (Video Game)
Genre: For the i7 4seasons zine, Gen, Team as Family
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-02-08
Updated: 2020-02-08
Packaged: 2021-02-28 04:26:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,337
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22617844
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aruarudayo/pseuds/aruarudayo
Summary: During the winter holidays, everyone in IDOLiSH7 is busy, especially MEZZO". Both Tamaki and Sougo keep saying they can handle it, which of course means it's only a matter of time until something snaps.
Relationships: Ousaka Sougo & Yotsuba Tamaki
Comments: 7
Kudos: 43





	the warmth within these fragile walls

**Author's Note:**

> I participated in the i7 4seasons zine and I've been given the okay to post my piece from it! I was part of the winter team if that wasn't apparent lol I ended up focusing on MEZZO", but this is really a found family fic, so everyone in i7 gets their moment.
> 
> Some minor content warnings: discussions of disordered eating habits and the awful homes that both Sougo and Tamaki came from. it's all in passing but just in case!
> 
> Please enjoy!

Iori brings up his concerns at school during lunch.   
  
He has one of his little notebooks out, eyebrows furrowed as he scrawls something or other in it, so absorbed that he doesn't even notice that Tamaki's finished his own bento and has started stealing bites of his.   
  
Eventually, after he's already eaten almost half of Iori's food, Tamaki decides to remind his classmate what lunch break is for. "Iorin," he calls, making Iori look up. "What're you looking at? Have some lunch."  
  
Iori glances between him and the notebook. “Yotsuba-san, do you think you and Osaka-san have too much work?” he asks. "The winter holidays are coming up, and you two get quite a lot of work because of your image. I don't want to—I mean, I don't want Manager and Banri-san to put too much on you."  
  
"Isn't it fine? It's the same as always. We always have more to do."  
  
"I suppose…but holidays are particularly stressful, not to mention the weather isn't exactly agreeable. Studies show—"   
  
Tamaki groans, putting his head on the desk. "Booooring."  
  
"This is important," Iori insists. "When you and Osaka-san work too hard, the first thing to break is your dynamic, and we don't want your health to suffer either."  
  
Tamaki waves a hand dismissively. "We'll be careful. We'll just do things like we always do. If something happens we can handle it."  
  
With his head down, he can't see Iori's worried frown. "I hope that you're right about that."  
  
  
  
  
  
"Sou, it's okay if you want to lighten your load, you know. None of us want you to push yourself."  
  
Sougo idly plays with the beer can in front of him—Yamato won't let him have more than one—as he considers their leader's suggestion. "I think I'll be okay. If it gets to be too much, then I'll say something."  
  
Yamato shakes his head. "No, see, I don't trust you to know when it's too much. 'Too much' for you has put you in the hospital before."  
  
"I'll be careful. I don't want to trouble everyone like that again."  
  
"It's not about being troubled or anything; we're all just worried about you. We don't want you to get hurt."  
  
"I'll be okay. I've been watching my health."  
  
Yamato sighs. "I know you don't like saying no, and I also know you're stubborn, so I'm going to drop it. But let us know if you need a break, okay?"  
  
Sougo smiles. "Thank you for your concern, Yamato-san. You’ll be the first to know if anything is wrong.”  
  
  
  
  
  
Of course, neither Sougo nor Tamaki notice the stress creeping up on them.   
  
Sougo fills up most hours of the day with photo shoots and TV show appearances and interviews, sometimes with other members, sometimes all on his own. He agrees to do late night appointments too, and often times he’s the first to leave the dorm in the morning and the last to return. A couple of the members have found him napping on the sofa, completely dead to the world, until his phone alarm goes off and then he’s up and out the door in the blink of an eye. No one is entirely sure he gets more than a handful of hours of sleep, and Mitsuki and Yamato have to ambush him before he leaves to make sure he eats, or at least takes something with him.   
  
Tamaki is still a minor, so he doesn’t have quite as much to do for work, and no one has to remind him to eat and sleep, but he still has to face his worst enemy: exams. If he isn’t with Sougo for MEZZO” work, he’s with Iori studying, and if he isn’t with Iori, he’s avoiding Iori so he doesn’t have to think for a while (he’s only sometimes successful).  
  
Tamaki manages to shake Iori off one afternoon by literally running out of the classroom as soon as the bell rings to end the day, not stopping until he’s several blocks down the road. He knows Iori isn’t nearly as athletic as he is, nor does he want to draw attention to himself at school, so he probably has some time to himself.  
  
He has something scheduled later that day, but he can give himself an early reward, right? He stops at a convenience store and buys himself a jar of pudding (or several), eagerly opening the container as he leaves, only for the treat to be taken out of his hands by none other than Sougo.   
  
“I’ve come to pick you up,” Sougo tells him, taking the bag of extras from him as well. “Our performance got pushed up.”  
  
“How did you even find me here?” Tamaki grumbles, eyeing the open pudding still in Sougo’s hand.   
  
“We were waiting by the school gate, actually, thinking we would catch you there, but then you ran out. I followed you the best I could, but it’s by chance that I managed to catch you here.” Sougo stifles a yawn. “Banri-san should be here with Iori-kun soon. I’ll have him take these back home, where you can have them  _ after _ we finish.”  
  
Tamaki groans. Iori will probably hold them hostage until they get some studying done. “Can I at least have that one?” he asks, taking a swipe at the little jar in his hand.  
  
Sougo holds it out of reach. “No. These things aren’t healthy for you, so they should only be for special occasions, and definitely not before dinner.”  
  
“You don’t eat, so why are you nagging  _ me _ about food?”  
  
Tamaki sees a flash of surprise and hurt in Sougo’s face before the other manages to school his expression, but he’s too irritated to pay it any mind.   
  
“I eat,” Sougo responds lamely, “and I at least eat healthy when I do. Besides, my habits don’t have any effect on yours; you still need to eat properly, and that means something other than pudding.”  
  
“Come on, just give me this one; it’s already open!”  
  
“No.”  
  
Banri and Iori find them like this, Tamaki stretched over his partner as he reaches for his snack, Sougo doing his best to keep it away from him, and both of them arguing over whether Tamaki can eat it or not.  
  
“This seems like a lot of energy wasted on something trivial,” Iori remarks, picking the convenience store bag up from where it lay forgotten on the sidewalk.   
  
Banri checks his watch. “We’re going to be late—Sougo-kun, just let him have that one. He’ll probably burn it off while dancing, anyway. You might want to have a protein bar, though.”  
  
Sougo purses his lips together before handing the jar to Tamaki without another word. The boy cheers, taking a triumphant bite of it before climbing in the car, Sougo following quietly after.   
  
“Iori-kun, do you want us to drop you off at the dorm?” Banri asks, the sounds of more bickering coming out of the back seat.   
  
Iori glances at the back of the car. “...I think I’ll just walk.”  
  
  
  
  
  
Sougo doesn’t really remember falling asleep on Nagi’s shoulder. He remembers agreeing to watch Magical Kokona with him, but he has zero recollection of the episode or when he closed his eyes and nodded off. He wakes to Nagi’s inquisitive stare, the television paused—Nagi must be rewatching a recording now—and the lights dimmed, more so than when they’d started watching.  
  
“ _ Rise and shine _ ,” Nagi says, his English soft and gentle. “I hope you feel a little more rested. I am sorry I did not realize how tired you were.”  
  
Sougo rubs his eyes, checking the time. It’s close to midnight, and he has to be on set to shoot a commercial tomorrow morning. “I thought one episode would be fine,” he yawns, covering his mouth. “I’ll have to rewatch some other time.”  
  
“Did you stay awake just because I asked you to watch with me?” Nagi asks. “I do not want you to overextend yourself.”  
  
“It’s okay, Nagi-kun; I wanted to watch.” Sougo tries to give him a reassuring smile, but Nagi only frowns in return.  
  
“Please take care of yourself; remember that you can say no sometimes, Sougo.” Nagi pats him fondly on the head, and for a second, Sougo feels like he’s the younger one. “Not being able to say no is dangerous, and even if it is something small, if you would be better off doing something else, like sleeping, I would prefer you do so instead of indulging me.”  
  
“Spending time with you and the other members is important to me, though,” Sougo cuts in. “I feel like I haven’t seen anyone besides Tamaki-kun recently.”  
  
Nagi hums thoughtfully. “And I assume Tamaki is not always the best companion?”  
  
“I wouldn’t say that…We’re very different, which is fine, but…”  
  
“Clashing with someone so often is tiring, correct?” Nagi chimes in with a knowing look. “And you both are tired regardless. Have you asked Manager for a break?”  
  
Sougo shakes his head. “I don’t need one.” He gets to his feet before Nagi can make another comment. “I’ll let you know when I have some free time to watch this episode again. Right now, I need to get to bed.”  
  
With that, he scurries out of the room, ignoring the worried creases in Nagi’s usually happy face.  
  
  
  
  
  
“Tamaki, I need flour, can you throw it over the ledge?” Riku says, moving his little character into place on the screen.  
  
Tamaki hums a frustrated note before suddenly dropping his game and groaning with his head in his hands.   
  
Riku pauses the game. “What's wrong?”  
  
Tamaki rubs at his eyes with the heel of his hand. “I got in a fight with So-chan ‘bout staying up late to game, and he said I’m working too hard so I shouldn't. And I get it, but I wanna have fun since we’re all working so much but—” He makes another grumpy noise. “—I’m tired. I want to go to bed.”  
  
“Why don't you then? We can play some other time,” Riku suggests.  
  
“But then So-chan’ll be right! And I don't  _ wanna _ be tired. I wanna have fun and do something besides work and studying and getting mad at Iorin and So-chan over stupid stuff.”  
  
“Are you really fighting with Iori and Sougo-san that much?”  
  
“Yeah...Kinda?" Tamaki's face twists into a complicated grimace. "Iorin’s just annoying me ‘cause of school, but So-chan keeps buggin’ me about  _ everything _ , and I can't get rid of him ‘cause we have to be on stage together all the time.”  
  
“Sougo-san usually has good intentions, at least! Have you tried to tell him you’re bothered?”  
  
“He’s not gonna listen to me. I think he’s getting more and more naggy everyday, too.”  
  
Riku makes a thoughtful noise, his expression softening sympathetically. “Maybe you’re both just stressed out?”   
  
Tamaki sighs, slumping in his chair. “Maybe…”   
  
Riku pats him on the shoulder. “Well if you need stress relief, I’ll play games with you whenever you feel like it!”  
  
“Are  _ you _ gonna be okay, Rikkun? You’re working kinda hard, too.”  
  
“I’ll be fine!” Riku says, waving off his worries. “I get regular checkups and I know my limits. I think it’s harder for you and Sougo-san; you guys don't have an illness to blame for not feeling good, so you want everything to be like always. But it isn’t going to be because you're so stressed out, which just makes it all worse because then you get annoyed really fast and stress each other out even more.”  
  
Tamaki lets out a groan again; all this discussion just makes his head hurt. “But that doesn’t stop us from getting annoyed!”  
  
“Well first thing’s first—you should get some rest.” Riku pulls Tamaki out of his beanbag chair and gently pushes him towards the door. “If it gets to be too much, tell Manager you want a break.”  
  
“But So-chan probably won’t ask for one…”  
  
“Talk to him, or just ask for one yourself. Then at least one of you is going to be in better shape, right?”  
  
“Hm...maybe. I’ll try to get through the next few days and if it’s still buggin’ me, I’ll ask. About a break, I mean.”  
  
Riku beams at him. “Good to hear. Now get some rest, Tamaki.”  
  
“Thanks," Tamaki says, yawning once more as he waves goodbye. "Night, Rikkun.”  
  
  
  
  
  
_ Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.  
  
_ Sougo tries his best to ignore the sound, knows they don't have anything to do right now and it's driving Tamaki nuts. They've already done hair and make up way ahead of schedule, so they have a good twenty minutes or so before they'll be called for their appearance on this variety show, but for the sake of their outfits and everything, they can't have snacks or drinks. It isn't a good idea to take a nap either for the same reasons (which Sougo has reminded his partner of several times already). This particular studio has notoriously awful reception too, so Tamaki can't even play any of his mobile games without leaving the premises, which would take up as much time as they have left. And they've already exhausted all possible conversation topics since they're together all too often these days.  
  
Sougo knows Tamaki can't sit still for very long without something to do, knows that it’s actually very mature of him to occupy his time with simply tapping his fingers on the armrest of the waiting room couch, but the sound is  _ grating _ . It doesn't help that Sougo is trying to occupy his own time thinking of the song he's working on, which isn't easy to do when every measure of his melody is interrupted with  _ tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.  
  
_ When he finds himself losing his place for the twelfth time, he's had enough. "Can you stop, please?"   
  
Perhaps it's more blunt than usual; he's too tired to be careful, to show he wants to be understanding. Regardless, Tamaki fixes an irritated glare on him. "Stop what?" he grumbles.   
  
Some of the exhaustion leaks out under the obvious frustration; Sougo ignores it. "That tapping is too noisy. Could you find something quieter to do?"  
  
Tamaki groans, a loud, long, put-upon sound that makes Sougo's eye twitch in the otherwise quiet room. "I'm so bored, So-chan! You won't let me sleep, I can't go play games, and now even tapping my fingers is too much.  _ You're _ too much!"  
  
" _ I'm _ too much?!"   
  
"You're nagging like always so I can't do  _ anything _ . I'm so  _ bored _ ."  
  
Sougo bristles instinctively at his tone but forces himself to take a breath, releasing it with a sigh. "I know that, but I'd really appreciate it if you did something quietly. If you want to move around, go walk down the hallway and back."  
  
Tamaki purses his lips, his face scrunching up in a pout like Sougo is completely missing the point. Maybe he is, but he isn't willing to expend more energy trying to decipher all of Tamaki's less obvious body language.  
  
"I'll buy you some pudding after this if you'll stop," he bargains. "I'll even take off my one per evening limit today. Just don't go overboard."  
  
Tamaki's eyes light up at that, and a part of Sougo is guilty that he's basically bribing him. But it works to get Tamaki out of the room for a little, and at this point, as tired and irritable as Sougo is (as they both are) he'll take any peace he can get.  
  
  
  
  
  
Sougo and Tamaki wake up one morning to the smell of pancakes, Mitsuki poking his head through each of their doors to call them for breakfast. It’s a little early for them; they have a schedule together in a little while, but they still have time, which Mitsuki probably took into account as he was cooking.   
  
Besides the pancakes, there’s some eggs and toast on the table as well, which is admittedly more than they’ve had most mornings. Tamaki is already grabbing a plate, while Sougo looks around and notes it’s just the three of them. “What’s all this?” he asks, pulling up a chair.  
  
“An intervention,” Mitsuki responds bluntly. “You guys are fighting more than usual, and no one else knows how to call you out on it, so I decided the best way was over food.”  
  
"So-chan needs a vacation," Tamaki says through a mouthful of pancake. "Maybe it'll make him stop nagging me 'bout everything."  
  
"Tamaki-kun needs to focus on more important things, like studying for his exams and coming to work on time."  
  
"That was one time! And I was only like ten minutes late."  
  
"It was closer to thirty. Manager-san had to go apologize."  
  
"It was only that bad ‘cause of traffic! I only overslept by ten minutes."  
  
"But you still overslept."  
  
"Guys," Mitsuki cuts in, "you're just proving my point. You know Manager will let you guys have more breaks, right? Well of course you know, you're just too stubborn and prideful to give it a rest."  
  
He picks up Sougo's still empty plate and puts rice with a fried egg on it. "You guys need to take care of yourselves. Not only do the fans pick up on it, but all of us are worried. We're all in high demand, and the company is going to give us as much work as they think we can stand. But we're not superheroes. It's okay to set boundaries."  
  
"If we're talkin' boundaries, then So-chan should mind his own business 'bout my grades," Tamaki says.  
  
"Tamaki-kun shouldn't concern himself with my meals," Sougo fires back.  
  
Mitsuki squints incredulously at them. "Are you guys seriously getting mad at each other for that?"   
  
"I'm tired of him being so nosy!" Tamaki exclaims.  
  
Sougo scowls. "I don't want to hear anything from someone who would have nothing but pudding if I didn't say anything!"  
  
"I can't believe you guys are fighting about caring about each other," Mitsuki sighs.   
  
"I don't care about him at all!" they yell in tandem, both of them getting to their feet.  
  
"Wait, where are you—"  
  
"We have a meeting soon, and I've lost my appetite," Sougo explains.  
  
"I'm done too," Tamaki says. "Might as well get there five minutes early Iike So-chan always wants. He has to be  _ so _ perfect after all."  
  
"Why are you being so sarcastic?! It should be expected to get there five minutes early!"

  
As their bickering continues out into the hall, Mitsuki stares dumbfoundedly at the door.   
  
"...I really don't get those two."  
  
  
  
  
  
Inevitably, Tamaki and Sougo explode. As is usually the case these days, it starts with something small.   
  
“Tamaki,” Mitsuki calls from the kitchen where he’s doing dishes, “I don’t see your lunch box; is it still in your bag?”  
  
Tamaki lets out a low groan, having just laid down on the couch after an evening schedule. “Maybe…” he replies, rolling reluctantly onto the floor before crawling over to where he’d left his bag by the TV.   
  
“Wouldn’t it be easier to get up entirely?” Sougo muses aloud as he watches him from the other couch.  
  
“Tama is lazy after my own heart,” Yamato quips from his seat next to Sougo, taking a sip of his beer. “It takes more effort to stand up all the way.”  
  
“Ah, here it is—found it, Mikki!” Tamaki calls, shuffling towards the kitchen. As he pulls the box out of his bag, a small piece of paper slips out with it, fluttering down onto the coffee table in front of Sougo and Yamato.  
  
The two adults peer at the paper before Sougo suddenly snatches it up and jumps to his feet. “Remedial lessons?!”   
  
Tamaki whips his head around, dropping everything as he swipes the paper out of Sougo’s hands. “It’s nothing!” Tamaki yells a little too forcefully.   
  
“Are you going to be able to take remedial courses on top of everything else? Banri-san didn’t really plan for this in our schedules; I thought you had been studying!”  
  
Tamaki’s hackles raise at the exasperation in Sougo’s voice. “Well sorry for being stupid! We can’t all be perfect like you, So-chan! Besides, I can just do work when I don’t have classes and on some of my off days.”  
  
“That is the  _ worst _ idea; working too much is how you got here.” Sougo crosses his arms, a pensive frown on his lips. “...It can’t be helped. I’ll take some of your solo work and do some of our joint appearances on my own. Clearly you need to take the time to focus on your studies.”  
  
Tamaki clicks his tongue. “Why do you gotta  _ do _ that?” he grits out. “I’m not a baby; I’ll deal with my work myself.”  
  
“We’re  _ partners _ , Tamaki-kun.”  
  
“Then don’t just decide by yourself!" Tamaki yells. “God, you’re just like your dad, makin’ decisions for people!”  
  
Sougo recoils like he’s been burned, and Tamaki seems to realize what he’s said, his face crumpling as he looks away from his partner.   
  
There’s a pause; the other members are watching, but no one dares interrupt now. There’s a dangerous glint to Sougo’s eyes now, a steeliness that makes Tamaki wince.  
  
When Sougo finally speaks, his quiet voice cuts through the silence like a blade, sharp and controlled. “Then tell me—how do you expect to make this work?” he asks. “You’ve already failed to balance your work and studies once; give me one reason why I should think it’ll be any different if you try again. If you would do things  _ properly _ , then we wouldn’t have to do it like this—”   
  
“You think I’m not doing things ‘properly’?” Tamaki cuts in, taking an indignant step towards the other.   
  
Sougo doesn’t even blink. “Are you?”  
  
Tamaki lunges for him, prompting the other members to try and stop him. But much to their surprise, he stops mid-strike, fist still in the air as he seems to rein himself in, turning away from Sougo with hard, shaky breaths.   
  
He lets out a small sob before dashing out of the room.   
  
The sound of the front door slamming shut sends Sougo reeling, the hardness gone from his gaze as his own words catch up to him.  
  
“...I’m going after him.”  
  
  
  
  
  
Snow falls lightly from the sky, catching in Sougo’s wool coat and scarf as he searches for where his partner ran off to. He’s cooled off since their fight, both figuratively and literally, and he knows he’s as much in the wrong as he believes Tamaki is. They’re all on edge at the dorm, but MEZZO” is prone to high stress more than the others; Sougo hadn’t noticed just how short his fuse had become, and Tamaki’s temper has never been great. It’s a wonder something like this hadn’t happened sooner.   
  
The streets are quiet, the late hour combined with the snow sending everyone else indoors, so Sougo starts looking for places where there  _ is _ activity. There’s a pair of children cutting through a playground to get home, a salaryman rushing through the street to get out of the snow, a reluctant looking teenager walking his dog—everyone is trying to get home, but there’s no sign of Tamaki.   
  
Then, when he’s ready to head home himself and just wait, he passes a park and hears the crunch of snow beneath heavy, unhurried footfalls.  
  
Tamaki is crouched in the park, patting a mound of snow before him. It’s dark, and his back is turned to Sougo, but they’ve spent so much time around each other that Sougo recognizes him just from the way he slouches.  
  
Sougo approaches, an inquisitive tilt to his head because he can't figure out what Tamaki is making. It's too spread out to be a snowman or any other kind of snow sculpture, and honestly that's about the extent of Sougo's knowledge of building things out of snow. He hadn't really had a chance to play in the snow as a child; his father had deemed it a frivolous use of time and said that, if he had time to waste, it would be better spent reading textbooks.   
  
Sougo would rather not think about that right now, though. "What are you making?" he asks, causing Tamaki to jump.   
  
The boy whirls around, a surprised frown on his face—though, Sougo notes, he doesn't seem to be upset anymore. "A snow fort," he answers plainly, like it should be obvious. "What're you doin' out here, So-chan? You'll catch a cold."  
  
"That's what I should say to you; you're just wearing a jacket and gloves."  
  
"I'm an idiot, so I don't get sick."  
  
"I don't think that's how it works…" They lapse into silence, and Sougo is torn between bringing up the fight that brought them out here and ignoring it so they don't have to talk about it. He goes with, "Can I help you with your snow fort?"   
  
Tamaki casts a suspicious look at him. "You're not going to make it look weird like your scary drawings, are you?"  
  
Sougo splutters. "Can you even make a snow fort look weird?"  
  
"Sure; it's like making a weird looking house, I guess."  
  
"Oh…" Logically, this makes sense, since Sougo does have an idea of what a fort looks like, but still, the concept of a snow structure is so nebulous to him that he doesn't know where to begin thinking about it.   
  
Tamaki stops to look over at Sougo again. "Why d'you look so confused?"  
  
"I've never built one of these before," Sougo admits. "I'm assuming you have, though."  
  
"'Course." Tamaki goes back to packing snow onto the walls of the structure. He moves a little slower and a little more deliberately, glancing pointedly at Sougo as he does.  
  
Smiling to himself, Sougo starts mimicking his movements. "Did you play in the snow a lot as a kid?"  
  
"Yeah; I liked making snow forts."  
  
"Why forts?"  
  
"I mean, they're your own spot, y'know? One you built yourself, like a secret base. We shared a lot of stuff at the orphanage, but if you build it yourself outside, you don’t have to share." Tamaki chuckles to himself. "The other kids broke 'em sometimes, but after I punched 'em a few times, they backed off."  
  
He jumps up, fists in the air. "I used to play with Aya in them all the time. She was the princess and I was protectin' her and the castle. Oh, then I was just protecting the castle, but even without Aya it was nice to have my own spot, y'know?"  
  
Sougo doesn't think he knows, since everything in his house was pretty closely monitored by his father in one way or another, and he hadn't had all that much room to escape.   
  
"You're thinking too hard, So-chan."  
  
Sougo blinks, shaking the memories from his head. “Teach me how to build a fort,” he says. “Let’s build one for the two of us.”  
  
Tamaki squints at him, as if trying to figure something out. Then he shrugs. “...Okay. Let’s do it.”  
  
They start piling snow up to make the walls, Tamaki showing Sougo how much to pat it down so it won’t collapse on itself. Tamaki starts ferrying armfuls of snow to their building spot from around the park, trying not to clear too much snow off the ground but also trying to get enough to make a structure big enough for both of them. They work in comfortable silence, both of them focused on the task at hand. More than once, Sougo’s work falls apart, but they don’t let it stop their momentum.   
  
Together, back to back, they pack snow around them, building higher and higher until the walls are about a meter tall. By some unspoken agreement, they both stop there, lying down in the snow to cool off and stretch out after their hard work. The fort isn’t all that big; it’s wide enough for them to sit in comfortably, but now that they’re laid out, their feet stick out of the entrance.   
  
The snow continues to drift down on them, settling gently on their hair and eyelashes. Sougo feels the cold on his back, a shiver seeping into his fingers from playing in the snow, but despite the chill, he’s more at ease than he’s been since the holiday season began.  
  
“I’m sorry for what I said earlier,” Sougo says softly. “I know you’re always trying your best. I don’t even think it’s that big of a problem for you to be taking remedial lessons, but after how strict our schedule has been, the thought of having to rework everything was...overwhelming, to say the least.”  
  
“...I don’t really blame you or anything,” Tamaki replies, folding his arms beneath his head. “I mean, I was the one that brought up your dad first.” He lets out a nervous cough. “Sorry ‘bout that, by the way. You’re really nothing like ‘im.”  
  
“You’re right in that I was rather domineering.”  
  
“I guess. But you get that way when you’re annoyed, and it’s not like you’re doing it to be mean. I know you just want to help.” He pauses for a moment, before adding, “You know I just want to help too, right?”  
  
Though it’s phrased like a question, Sougo waits, sensing he has more to say, and as expected, Tamaki continues. “Like...I know I’m not good at things like waking up on time or talking to people. But I made a promise before that I wouldn’t let you take everything on yourself. I don’t wanna see you collapse again, so I don’t want you taking on all my work.” For the first time in a while, Tamaki turns to look at him, and when Sougo does the same, he can see how tired and sad his partner is. “I was scared you were gonna get hurt again. That’s why I yelled.”  
  
“It’s okay,” Sougo says.   
  
“But I feel super bad about it, ‘cause I know you were thinking about your dad a lot while we were building our fort.”  
  
Sougo can’t argue with that. “I couldn’t help thinking about how my father never would have let me do this. At the very least he would have complained I’d catch a cold.” Then he smiles. “But honestly, I’ve never felt warmer.”  
  
“Isn’t it fun? We really haven’t had time for something like this in a while.” Tamaki grins back at him before his face becomes serious once more. “I think we should ask Manager for a break.”  
  
Sougo nods immediately. “After today, I think it’s obvious we need it.” With a dry chuckle, he adds, “Everyone warned us, but it didn’t do us very much good.”  
  
Tamaki sighs. “Yeah. Even though they’re workin’ hard, too, everyone tried so hard to get us to relax.” His eyes soften, his lips quirking upwards. “They really care about us, don’t they?”   
  
“They do,” Sougo agrees, mirroring his expression.   
  
“Do you think Rikkun and the others can take a break too?”   
  
“Maybe. I’m sure they wouldn’t be opposed to one.”  
  
“I want us all to take a break. And I want to make a biiiig fort that all seven of us can fit in.” Tamaki throws his arms out as he talks, the idea bringing a sparkle to his eye that makes Sougo giggle.  
  
“That sounds like a wonderful idea.”  
  
“I like forts,” Tamaki says. “Even if you’re the only one in them, it feels warm, like a home.”  
  
Sougo’s childhood home had never been warm. Based on what Tamaki’s said, he’s fairly certain Tamaki is the same. But they both know there’s a warm place for them back at the dorms, filled with laughter and love and five people that just want them to be happy.   
  
As if he can read his thoughts, Tamaki gets up, brushing his clothes off before extending a hand to his partner. “Let’s go home. Everyone’s probably waiting for us.”  
  
Sougo’s heart feels full at the thought. There are people waiting for them. There are people that want them to come home.   
  
He takes Tamaki’s hand in his own. “Yes,” he says. “Let’s go home.” 


End file.
